obrien.david.j

The red goni in the lower left corner make an impressive statement.   

Sweet colors and great variety.   What month will you be in town - Any chance you'll be in town March 16, to attend the club meeting at Brittany's (in Tillamook) and a tour of Whiskey Creek Hatchery?

8 hours ago, Brittany said:

Wow I’m surprised about that.  Your tanks are looking SOOO GOOD.

 

how long did it take for Frag tank to get that yuck.  I guess when nothing else is there yuck takes over.  Yuck isn’t hurting that Goñi.  …

Took a couple of months to get in that state.    I've been running it lowest flow for over a year, not clear what changed.   But as @Eatfrenchfries pointed out, it's the biome - and I assume that means something just started to Grow.

Goni is there specifically because I'd heard they like slightly swampy, back water lagoon settings too.   So, I tried it.   @SuncrestReef - this is your original Goni.   It's been doing great!   One detail, when I feed the tank, I specifically pour one cube of frozen brine shrimp into the tank right over the goni.   as food settles... you can tell where it lands.

47 minutes ago, Krux said:

If you need it David, I have so much DE it isn't even funny - happy to give some up in the interest of science.  I bought it for an in tank filter for dino control, and it came in a 40# box - I used like 12 oz.

Thanks for the offer.  I'm good for now.

12 hours ago, Krux said:

A Fluval canister is your friend here for extended siphoning.

9 hours ago, Thatoneguy said:

Now that is something I had never considered, that makes so much sense when said out loud.

The tank is full of red-slimy-crap.  Canister filter generically makes sense, except...  I don't think I want to take red slime, turn it into a milkshake, and hope canister filter cartridges catches it.    It's only a 50g tank.   I'll just scrape, and syphon up to all 50g - and then just refill it.  I'll consider it part of an overall system water change.

Thanks for the suggestions

They look fantastic in your tank.  And you’ve got room to let them grow Even Bigger!  

6 minutes ago, Krux said:

With that form factor I would personally try a horizontal mounted gyre type pump.

light spectrum was going to be my first suggestion but it looks like you are already playing with that.  I agree that spectrum is probably the main culprit unless the uglies are proper predominantly in the lowest flow areas currently.

In general, this whole tank is a low flow area.  So I'll have to turn some flow back on.    I like your idea of a gyre.  I'll put one on... After I syphon some crap out.

1 hour ago, Eatfrenchfries said:

White, Red, Green. and blue are helpful for growing algae. White and blue may be a bit more useful in your case. Your dragon breath may grow better in the East.  

I have noticed PAR is less crucial than spectrum

Blasting some flow through the tank would lean in favor of the macroalgae.  

Okay, Blue has been increased.   Before adding flow, I'm going to syphon the red junk out.

3 hours ago, SuncrestReef said:

Very interesting. Is the kole tang still in the west tank?

Unfortunately, the Kole is no longer with us.   (I accidently hurt him about six months ago, while doing maint on the tank.)   There are a pair of Bangaii in the tank.

3 hours ago, Eatfrenchfries said:

The flow within each individual tank matters. Inflow and outflow is how fast you filter. Recirculation is what you can actually filter out. 

Linking these three photic reefs via a central cryptic network (sump) will share chemistry but not processes.

The physical environment being different will make it so only the best organism  suited will colonize that portion.

Okay, message heard.    

I realized, there's one more key difference between the two tanks.   Light programming is different.   I'd attempted to make the West tank more macro algae growth friendly.    Chaeto and the (dragons breadth?) red macro in the basket.     West tank is Red and White dominated, east tank is blue dominated.   

Thoughts on this direction?

Talk about crazy differences.   I have three tanks, all connected as one system via common sump.   

1. 250g Main display tank - heavy flow, sps dominated
2. 50g East frag tank - heavy flow, sps dominated + other stuff
3. 50g West frag tank - setup as slow water movement tank, for things that want a gentler env

Today's discussion is about the West frag tank.  It's turned into a cesspool of red yuck.    The east and west frag tanks get the same inflow and outflow of water, from the sump, but have dramatically different recirculating within the tanks.  Reaching out to @Eatfrenchfries to see if our resident expert has any ideas why yuck would live here, and not in the other two tanks. 

Is within tank water movement THIS much of a difference?

Main Display

East Frag Tank

West Frag Tank

On 2/26/2024 at 9:29 AM, obrien.david.j said:

Thanks for the reminder.  Just got mine ordered.  I use HI736.   

Bit disappointed.   My HI736 calibration check kit came in, ran it yesterday.   Cal kit itself is for 100 +/- 10.   That's Phosphate of 0.307 +/- 0.031.     In general, I've been trying to keep phosphate in the 0.06-0.09 range.    So the error alone on the cal solution is near the range I'm targeting.

BTW, my checker was within cal solution range.  Nothing wacky off.

If anyone wants to check their HI736, cal set is easy to borrow - or just bring your tester (no vials needed) to the next club meeting, at Brittany's place in Tillamook, and I'll bring the cal set along.   You can check your tester on the spot.   

1 hour ago, Krux said:

Have you participated in the NSI program in the past?

Not NSI, but I've attended multiple Neptune get togethers at MACNA's over the years, and worked with them offline a few times.

In the past 48hrs, I've received effectively the same (formatted) mail from Ecotech and Neptune.   Both hinting there's new announcements/products coming out.

If they announce (or show) something at Reefstock, will you report back here please.  Post a photo of it.

Quote

 

Dear Fellow Reef Keeper,

We hope this message finds you and your tank well and thriving! 

It’s been a minute since we reached out, but it’s never a bad time to express that your satisfaction and loyalty means the world to us. 

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be sharing some great stuff to let you know what we’ve been up to as well as useful community news and product content.

 

Here's a sneak peek at what awaits you:

• Product news and launch information: Discover our latest innovations designed to cater to your needs and preferences.

• Tradeshows and Events: Stay tuned for show dates and places to meet with the EcoTech Team.

• Product announcements, giveaways and opportunities: Who doesn't love deals and the chance to win free stuff?

• Community involvement and activities: Get involved with the wide world of EcoTech Marine and our partners

 

RSVP for me.  I'll be there!

1 hour ago, Krux said:

Yep, gotta get the correct one - I order the wrong reagents half the time and now have like 500 tests for the other checker that have gone out of date...

I keep a list of my three testers I've used regularly.  So I can always spot check the exact number when ordering.  My main three Hanna tests are:  HI736, HI782, HI705 (silica, when I'm dosing it)

46 minutes ago, shaywood said:

What do you do if the calibration fluid shows the testers incorrect?

I'll at least know it's off, and in what direction.   I'm not a stickler for perfect numbers.  I'm more of a directional trend person.   (and I use ICP often enough, if I'm SUPER off, it can help me know that)

When I setup my tank, I had access to 1/2" HDPE/SeaBoard, and used it as the surface between the tank and the metal stand.  (instead of plywood).  Not cheap, but fully drillable, cuttable, etc.

Little googling leads me to HDPE, SeaBoard, StarBoard names.   (I'll bet I have Marine Starboard)

There is no way 1/2" would be needed for a controller board, etc.   it's strong stuff.  thinner would work

Thanks for the reminder.  Just got mine ordered.  I use H736.   Added it to an order of BenePets I needed.

Don't know why I've never done this before... But I searched "plastic pegboard" on both amazon.com and homedepot.come - and came up with multiple options. 

Looked the product up.  At first, it looked great.    Put standoffs behind it.  slots could allow easy ziptie of components.  Drill holes, shove some cords behind it...

Then I looked at the material it's made from.   Doesn't excite me.   What's different between this and home depot pegboard.    Is it the extra accessories that have you interested.     Long term, I'm never happy with fiberboard around my tank.  Especially when I'm likely to drill it.

Main parts:

Fiberboard, Acrylic paint

Thanks for the update.

13 hours ago, Lexinverts said:

Hi All,

I'm finally posting my setup to this thread. This is not as economical as Dave's setup. I'm using the Reefboxx automatic switch ($100) along with a LiFePO4 battery ($60 for 20ah or $130 for 50ah) a fancy smart (trickle) charger ($85) and a 12V to 24V voltage booster + cables ($30).

My return pump is 24V and most of the economical batteries are 12V. You can use a booster to get 24V or you can set up two identical 12V batteries in series to get 24V. I wanted a single battery in the space.

I love this hobby.   There are awesome products all over the place.  I'd never heard of Reefboxx, but see the obviousness of it's use and value.

1. I see two manual switches in your setup.   Did you add these, or they come with the setup?   (got a link?)

2. Does it come with it's own power brick (to the wall), or do you re-use the brick that came with your pump?

3. I did some research, ReefBuilders did an article in 2022 when this product came out.  

https://reefbuilders.com/2022/09/27/reefboxx-is-a-new-affordable-battery-backup-for-dc-reef-gear/

4. And the Reefboxx website says there's a version 2 coming out soon.  Looks like it can natively handle 36v in, if desired.  (that's three batteries in series).   But the biggest selling point looks like it comes with Two outputs.   I wonder if that means it needs a bigger input power brick?

Very interesting product, especially for pumps that don't offer the ecotech back up power port directly.  (which feels like basically, every other pump/power head out there)

What's a "slide" for an XR30 (or XR15)?    I've got bunch of them, but built my own mounting system.  Just curious.

I like Lou, and the tropic marin line of products.   Met him at MACNA, in Orlando.   Clearly knows his stuff, and as a bonus sent me home with double handfuls of products.   I've been using the NP line of products for carbon dosing for ~1-2yrs.   First NP-Elim (had high phos and nitrates), now NP-Balance (they're under control now).

Looking good!

If you don't want to wait, and you're willing to use your own hose nipple, I've got the female slip and threaded version of this coupling.